In the wake of an overnight shooting in downtown Savannah that hospitalized two 20-year-olds, Savannah-Chatham police have vowed to increase their presence in areas frequented for entertainment.

Gunfire erupted in the middle of a large crowd gathered near the intersection of Broughton and Jefferson streets just before 3 a.m. Friday, said Julian Miller, police spokesman. A male 20-year-old victim was transported by ambulance to Memorial University Medical Center and taken into emergency surgery. The other victim, a female, was taken to the hospital by private vehicle with non-life threatening wounds.

Police did not release information about possible suspects Friday but urged anyone who was in the crowd — that Miller said may have included more than 100 people — to provide details to investigators.

Savannah-Chatham Police Chief Willie Lovett, speaking at the department’s downtown headquarters Friday afternoon, promised that his officers would do whatever was necessary to keep the area safe after the Friday night shooting that followed another shooting outside a Bay Street club early Sunday morning in which two other people were hospitalized.

“We want to assure the downtown community, and anyone else that wants to come downtown, that the community is safe,” Lovett said. “We realize that we have some special problems that we’re enduring right now, and we’re making steps to correct what I feel are necessary corrections in some of our enforcement efforts.”

Downtown Precinct commander Capt. Mike Wilkins said it was his responsibility to determine the necessary action to keep the downtown areas safe, even as larger groups of — often heavily intoxicated — people gather later into the evenings, often convening at several late-night eateries after bars and clubs close.

Starting Friday, and continuing indefinitely, Wilkins said people will notice a much larger police presence downtown, especially during the late night and early morning hours Thursdays through Sundays.

Although Wilkins was not specific about what tactics will be used or how many additional officers will be deployed, he said he was “very confident” the plans would successfully reduce crime throughout the area.

“The order has already been sent out and will be in effect (Friday night) and into (this) morning,” Wilkins said. “We’re going to make sure that these events do not occur in the future... The officers have been given very specific instructions on how to proceed. They are instructed to work with other city bureaus, and they are instructed to address these issues before they become much more problematic.”

Business owners in the area where Friday morning’s shooting occurred indicated an increased police presence would be a strong step toward curtailing issues along the Broughton corridor and throughout downtown.

The owner of Clipper Trading Co., that recently moved from the 200 block to the 100 block of West Broughton, said she’d recently heard complaints about Savannah from tourists visiting her store.

An increased presence of uniformed officers, Tilly Blanken said, would likely help alleviate some of the issues those tourists cited.

“As a store owner it’s upsetting to hear that people from out of town don’t want to be here,” Blanken said. “There’s a perception — we do have a problem with the homeless people and the hoodlums that have been hanging around, so a little more (police) presence, I think that’s a good thing.”

Another business operator on West Broughton said she’d never feared working or shopping in the area, and said she was confident the Friday morning incident was an isolated event.

“There’s no reason people shouldn’t feel safe downtown,” said Jane Gough, who manages the American Craftsman Galleries in the 200 block of West Broughton Street. “Frankly, it happened at (3 a.m.) when people are out doing things they probably shouldn’t be doing.”

She particularly credited the Savannah-Chatham police who helped secure the store after a stray bullet from the incident shattered the glass panel on its door. A glass panel at the Urban Outfitters next door was also broken.

“The police handled the situation really well,” Gough said. “Going forward, obviously, it cannot hurt for them to have more patrolling officers in the area. Our city runs on tourism, so anything to help us continue to feel as safe as possible, I think, is a really good plan.”

Meanwhile, Lovett said his investigators are continuing to look into the Friday night shooting. The chief said his department would take whatever action was required to stop incidents like the recent downtown shooting from happening.

“We will do whatever it takes,” Lovett said. “If it means we have to spend more (money on) overtime, whatever we have to do we’ll make those adjustments. There is nothing more important than the safety of the people who come downtown or any other place in the city or county that people want to visit. We cannot put a value on that.”

CALL CRIMESTOPPERS

Anyone with information on the Friday night shooting at Broughton and Jefferson streets that hospitalized two 20-year-olds is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 912-234-2020 or text CRIMES (274637). Tipsters remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward.

A confidential Tip Line also is open directly to investigators at 912-525-3124.

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this is the same thing that we hear from Willie time after time, yet things remain unchanged. In the past I had the upmost respect for Mr. Lovett, however this has changed over the last couple of years. It is time for action, not just words. Please show us something because this is getting very old.

not sure of the name, but it is primarily patronized by young, blacks. One problem is that when it closes, they don't leave. They like to socialize in the street so you have huge crowds out there at 3 a.m. The other problem is...well...you know.

Does that mean other areas of the city/county will have less police presence and patrols?

Notice how Capt. Wilkins tries to fall on the sword for Willie."Mike Wilkins said it was his responsibility to determine the necessary action to keep the downtown areas safe, even as larger groups of — often heavily intoxicated — people gather later into the evenings, often convening at several late-night eateries after bars and clubs close."

So pathetic. We have nothing but a reactionary police chief that takes no responsibility for anything and can't see anything beyond his desk and his desire for a new Tahoe.

The article states that both of the people shot were 20 years old...however the legal drinking age is 21.

Were these kids in the club? Were they drinking?? As far as I know, it is not legal to be drinking in a club when you're twenty. I wonder if there were liquor license violations going on in the club before everyone poured out onto the street after last call.

Perhaps in addition to an increased police presence downtown (which is a good idea!), there could also be some sting operations conducted by the city to ensure that clubs are actually carding people before selling them alcohol.

Armed, inebriated, underage thugs have invaded the tourist space. Without violating their "rights", how do we keep them from killing the golden goose? That will certainly put a damper on the Tahoes and $6000 a piece walkie-talkies that the police use. Heck, they may have to downgrade to the $400 a piece walkie talkies that trades people and businesses use.

A couple of years ago, the same kind of behavior was happening at the IHOP on Victory drive, and the police response (C Willies) was "you're on your own"....probably the same group of people, who got the message loud and clear that they could do whatever the hell they wanted...I know, private property vs public streets, and commercial corridor vs historic district, but these hooligans pretty much act with impunity, and they think its no big thang...they are and they aren't fools.

We're on to something here in re the captains. When the FBI is done investigating the issue of crime statistics, they will have discovered something that many of us already know: the captains report weekly to the chief of what goes on in their precincts. When the chief brings heat on the captains, the captains go back to their squads and tell them to downgrade offenses and not report the minor ones, in an effort to make this city appear to be safer than before. Ask any cop on the beat and they will tell you that this is true. And if the chief doesn't know it, then he should. And if he is aware of this practice, then his days with the SPD are near the end.

The police are under-staffed and overwhelmed. We are not safe. But it is only when tourism numbers decline that the City will finally be forced to take drastic action, only it will be too late to undo the damage. Unfortunately, Visit Savannah also cooks their books and, well, this process gets worse and seemingly never ends...

That is what the City is promoting ! Just keep opening more bars. Let people walk around totally smashed out of their minds puking and yelling and fighting and being out of control. Thursday is SCAD get stoned night ,add the tourists ,The elite with the locals. Young woman totally out of it. It is VERY disturbing. Savannah is a totally different place after 9:00. Thursday through Sunday morning.

A few months ago, I argued on these threads that the time for talk was over and that the Mayor and the Council needed to allocate sufficient funding for additional cops on the beat downtown and to direct that the manpower be allocated to concentrate efforts downtown and in high crime areas. Cops on foot, walking the downtown area. and also walking areas high crime histories, are essential to getting the problems under control.

However, the Mayor and the Council complained that they didn't have the resources to fulfill the requests by the Police Department. That is rubbish. Maybe the Police don't need everything that was requested, but it is readily apparent that they need more patrol officers. Shift spending from other areas and put the resources into law enforcement now, or watch your city lose its draw as a tourist destination faster than you can say Saturday Night Special. It must be done now, and the Mayor better get on the stick and lead before it is too late.

The 5000 dollar radio is necessary. It allows communications with all municipalities across the eastern seaboard, they last a minimum of ten years, encrypted and they are the most important tool a cop has...we do not pay them enough..at least supply them with the tools to keep them safe...